The use of a pair of inner and outer treating members, preferably conical, and which are rotatable relative to each other, is known. By utilizing these types of treating members, different materials can be mechanically processed, dispersed and/or mixed. For example, organic or inorganic fibers or particles can be dispersed in gaseous or fluid media, such as air, steam, water, etc. Also, chemicals such as colorants, bleaching agents, binding agents, etc., can be admixed therein. Conventional mixing members of this type have a number of variants, including rotating and counter-rotating disk-shaped or conically shaped rotation bodies, which are provided with treating surfaces showing different patterns of recessed and elevated portions, which produce the turbulence and agitation required to perform their intended function.
When certain chemicals, such as binding agents, are added to fiber mixtures, difficulties normally arise due to coatings being applied and/or clogging of these grooved patterns of the treating surface. Furthermore, these coatings and such clogging are difficult to remove, and after a certain period of operation they can prevent the proper functioning of the mixer. In that case, the mixer has to be taken out of operation for cleaning purposes, which, in turn, causes repeated stoppages, and thus results in production disturbances.
The only manner of overcoming these interruptions has been to install extra mixing devices, to which the fiber flow can thus be transferred during the time when the clogged machines are being cleaned and restored to their operational state. This procedure is expensive, both in terms of manual service and the extra investments required therefor.